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21L.601

Old English and Beowulf

3-0-9 units. HASS-H · Undergraduate

Intensive introduction to Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon), the ancestor of modern English that was spoken in England ca. 600-1100. In the first half of the term, students use short prose texts to study the basics of Old English grammar. They go on to read short poems, and conclude by tackling portions of the epic Beowulf in the last third of the term. Assessment based upon translation work, daily vocabulary quizzes, and three exams. Limited to 16.

Spring 2023

This course is an intensive introduction to Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon), the ancestor of modern English that was spoken in England *ca.* 600–1100. In the first half of the term, students use short prose texts to study the basics of Old English grammar. They go on to read short poems, and conclude by tackling portions of the epic *Beowulf* in the last third of the term. Assessment is based upon translation work, daily vocabulary quizzes, and three exams.

Readings

  • [B] Beowulf, trans. Seamus Heaney. Norton, 2001. ISBN: ‎9780393320978.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE] Peter Baker, Introduction to Old English, 3 rd edition. Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. ISBN: 9780470659847.
    Listed reading
  • [M & R] Bruce Mitchell and Fred C. Robinson, A Guide to Old English, 8 th edition. Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. ISBN: ‎9780470671078.
    Listed reading
  • [WE] Greg Delanty and Michael Matto, eds., The Word Exchange: Anglo-Saxon Poems in Translation. Norton, 2011. ISBN: ‎9780393342413.
    Listed reading
  • [WH] Stephen Barney, Word-Hoard, 2 nd edition. Yale, 1985. ISBN: ‎9780300035063.
    Listed reading
  • Burton Raffel’s translations of the Elegies. In Poems and Prose from the Old English, 2 nd edition. Yale University Press, 1998. ISBN: ‎9780300069952.
    Listed reading
  • [M & R], pp. 99–103, Ælfric’s Preface to Genesis, lines 1–24.
    Listed reading
  • [M & R] Ælfric’s Preface to Genesis, lines 24–43.
    Listed reading
  • [M & R] Ælfric’s Preface to Genesis, lines 44–58.
    Listed reading
  • [M & R] Ælfric’s Preface to Genesis, lines 59–80.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 17, The Wife’s Lament.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 18, The Husband’s Message.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 16, Wulf and Eadwacer.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 13, The Dream of the Rood, lines 1–49.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 13, The Dream of the Rood, lines 50–100.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE], Text 13, The Dream of the Rood, lines 101–56.
    Listed reading
  • [IOE] Beowulf , lines 1–11.
    Listed reading
  • [WH] Word Groups 211–27. (Congratulations, you now know the 2000 most commonly used words of Old English poetry!!!)
    Listed reading

Prerequisites & course information

Same subject as 24.916[J] Prereq: None U (Spring) 3-0-9 units. HASS-H

Sources